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Monthly Archives: March 2016

Hello all. We are all rejuvenated following a short break so we’re back with today’s tip and this is one that can apply to all social media channels.

I’m often asked by clients about the use of scheduling tools such as Hootsuite for social media posts and whether they’re a good idea.

I think that they can be a very useful tool IF you don’t rely solely on them. They’re very useful for standard messages but the beauty of social media is its spontaneity and I think you can lose the power to tap into breaking stories if you don’t check your social media feeds personally.

There has also been some controversy surrounding the use of scheduled posts during tragic world events. My take would be don’t let this put you off, but possibly discretion is the better part of valour and it may be wise to turn off scheduled posts if something major happens. At the end of the day whether you agree or not, you don’t want to be the subject of a social media rant about insensitivity, your social media profile has to be impeccable.

So my conclusion is, yes use them. But don’t rely on them and don’t lose that personal touch!

So today’s Tip is something that boils down to personal preference, and this is only our advice. Today we’re concentrating on Direct Messages on Twitter.

I’m sure you’ve all had the situation where you follow someone new on Twitter and you immediately get a Direct Message from them, not only saying thank you but immediately asking you to visit their site, or purchase something. And – let’s face it – that is pretty annoying.

So our tip today is, by all means have an automated Direct Messaging system set up to thank your new followers, after all manners are important. But don’t use that vital first point of contact to spam your new followers. You’re very likely to make someone unfollow you if they get unsolicited messages and once you lose a follower you won’t get them back.

Make sure your business website is optimised to perform at the best level on mobile devices. A good percentage of social media users do so on a mobile device, therefore it is reasonable to assume that if they follow a link to your website, they will be viewing on the same device.

Make sure your mobile site looks good and works as well as your desktop site. It is always a good option to allow people to swap to the desktop site should they choose. You can use a tool such as Google’s Mobile-Friendly tool to check how your site is running.

We will be doing a lesson piece on best practice for mobile sites shortly so watch this space!